A couple of the responses I got to the post I wrote about the high cost of insulin were so encouraging and helpful I thought I’d share them with you blog readers today. First, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) wrote to let me know they have partnered with dozens of other organizations to create getInsulin.org, a site full of resources to help with insulin access. Kudos to those organizations for working together to get all those helpful resources available in one place. And then, a note from a mom on Long Island who remembers me from a 2014 visit to her daughter’s elementary school. Penny has worked in the clinical trials industry for 23 years, and her note brought up some unsung heroes I wouldn’t have thought of on my own. I appreciated her insight, asked if I could share her note here as a guest blog, and…here it is.
by Penny Wong-Matzelle
Your article Cheaper Than Water struck a chord with me. I work in a clinical trials lab, so my customers are these Pharma Companies.
I’ve worked in this industry with so many amazing individuals whose hearts and minds are in the right place. For sure, many get into this line of work because they know their efforts can bring life-saving drugs to market and improve the quality of life for patients. But clearly, something happens between that person’s seat at the lab and that of the CEOs of these corporations.
Stockholders and greedy boards send the message that the almighty dollar is the most important bottom line. And that saddens me, especially for all of the incredible work that is done at lower levels within these organizations.
We are working with so many companies right now that are trying to bring COVID cures and vaccines into reality. I can’t adequately express the tireless efforts so many individuals are putting forth in order to achieve this. Here are a few examples of the lengths they are going to in order to see that safe vaccine are created and distributed as quickly as possible:
- moving from one region to another as needed
- leaving their kids and family behind temporarily in order to work under quarantine
- working seven days a week to ensure critical path trials continue on their fast-track course to drug approval
- making genuine efforts from every clinical trial arena to be a part of the solution to this pandemic.
Many of these workers are doing all of that while home-schooling, no less! Their dedication keeps me going. Their determination encourages me to stick around for the good fight, even when things are trying. Their selflessness gives me hope that there is good in the world.
So when I am reminded of the challenges of health care in our country, it’s disheartening to think forward and fear that some of these treatments will not be available to some who may not have access to health care in the U.S., all because of policies, red tape and greed. Awareness is step one, and I’ve shared your post with everyone I know in the industry and beyond. If any of them rise up the ladders of those corporate entities that hold the power, or if they get involved in local governance, little by little, we can be a part of the change that so many of us would love to see.
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